1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to amusement devices and more particularly to amusements devices for squirting liquids.
2. Previous Art
No water amusement device is known which employs a glove and a portable water storage and power assembly. Previous water amusement devices have included a replica of virtually every known gun, including pistols, M-16's, 9 MM automatic hand guns and Uzzi's. Some of these replicas are so realistic, they have been mistaken for real guns. In some isolated incidents, these mistakes have caused fatal results. In fact many police departments throughout the United States have lobbied and been effective at having legislation passed which bans such realistic gun replicas.
The replica water guns are typically made from a hard, high impact plastic to promote durability and to add to their appearance. Unfortunately, this same hard, high impact plastic has some serious disadvantages. In the heat of a water competition, participants may be accidentally struck with the replica guns made from this hard, high, impact plastic causing harm and even serious injury. Such replica water guns typically have a separate small water storage and an electro-mechanical pump to pump the water from the storage to the gun opening. A portable power source is also typically provided with the replica water guns to run the pump. A trigger is also typically provided for activating the pump. None of the replica water guns have the structure or advantages of a glove- like device.
The closest reference found is to the invention herein is to Reiser et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,037,790 which discloses a glove for expelling liquid for the wrist area by applying pressure to the palm portion. The Reiser et al glove has a compressible bulb disposed at the palm portion of the glove. A tube extends into an aperture on the glove for spraying. The Reiser et al structure has no separate portable water source and must be refilled after the bulb runs out of liquid. This lack of a separable water storage is especially important in organized water competitions. Running out of water frequently adds to the likelihood of a participant become water soaked. Being able to squirt other participants is both a defensive and an offensive tool. Additionally, Reiser et al does not disclose an electro-mechanical power source.
Others have developed water gloves for watering and gardening not suitable for being an amusement device. For example, Gibson, U.S. Pat. No. 1,534,208; Cray, U.S. Pat. No. 836,181; and Hopkins, U.S. Pat. No. 1,177,412 all disclose watering gloves which are suitable for gardening and not for water competitions. Particularly, Cray and Gibson disclose the use of the use of stop cocks which are slow and difficult to open and close quickly; an absolute necessity in water competitions. Additionally, none of the above reference disclose a separate water storage or portable power source. While the replica water guns do offer the advantage of water flowing in a hard, pulsating stream, the disadvantages noted above are present. The watering gloves referred to above disclose the use of a glove for gardening and amusement. However, these gloves are unsuitable for organized water competitions because they are slow to operate (open and close) and have neither a separable water storage nor a power source for squirting the water. What is needed is a water amusement device which has the advantage of flowing water in a hard, pulsating stream without the disadvantages of being mistaken for a real gun or causing injury during the heat of a water competition due to the high impact plastic structure of the replica water gun.